Daniel Cormier appears to have minimised the size disparity between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski, the latter’s opponent at UFC 284. This occurs at the same time that “Volk” is being praised widely for his outstanding performance against the considerably larger Makhachev.
Against UFC featherweight (145-pound) champion Alexander Volkanovski, UFC lightweight (155-pound) champion Islam Makhachev was able to successfully defend his title. On February 12 at UFC 284, a fiercely contested battle between the two fighters resulted in Makhachev’s unanimous decision victory.
Makhachev fought in lightweight, which was the weight division of the fight at UFC 284. He appeared to be quite a bit taller and heavier than the featherweight kingpin, which led many to believe that he had a sizable size advantage over Volkanovski.
MMA legend Daniel Cormier dissented from podcast co-host Ryan Clark’s claim that Islam Makhachev had a significant size advantage over Alexander Volkanovski in the most recent episode of ESPN MMA’s DC & RC podcast. DC refuted Clark’s assertions and stated that Makhachev and Volkanovski most likely weighed about the same on fight night. Mr. Cormier said:
“Theoretically, Makhachev is 10 pounds heavier to begin with, but, no lie, Ryan, he is just 10 pounds heavier outside of fight camp or only on weigh-in day. Because on the night of the fight, Alexander Volkanovski did not weigh more than Islam Makhachev. They only weigh 155 for the brief time they step on the scale, therefore I wish we have the numbers shown. Volkanovski and Islam are both unable to return to their maximum numbers in a 24-hour period, thus it is reasonable to assume that on fight night, they were somewhat comparable.”
Additionally, “DC” noted that, despite Volkanovski’s diminutive size, he likely weighed around the same as Makhachev did during their fight in the octagon:
“Islam was probably only going to weigh up to 175 pounds, or roughly 20 pounds. Volkanovski appeared to be very large inside. He is very thick.”
Could Alexander Volkanovski’s featherweight duties delay his potential rematch against Islam Makhachev?
While the Makhachev-Volkanovski fight was the main event of UFC 284, the co-headliner featured Yair Rodriguez defeating Josh Emmett by submission in the second round to earn the interim UFC featherweight title. Alexander Volkanovski, the current UFC featherweight champion, is expected to fight Rodriguez in the following title matchup, according to consensus.
Nevertheless, Alexander Volkanovski has constantly argued that he should have been given the victory according to the judges’ scorecards rather than Islam Makhachev “The Great,” and has been pushing for an instant rematch against Makhachev.
Future meetings between Volkanovski and Makhachev have not yet been formally announced. However, each combatant has stated that they would be open to a hypothetical rematch.